Cattle Market Pulse

Powell Livestock Market Report, Smithfield, NC

Smithfield, North Carolina · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Thursday, August 6, 2026

204 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest Powell Livestock Market report →

light 5-weight M&L 1 heifers $347.58/cwt +27.06 vs last sale · ≈ $1,831/hd at 527 lb · 14 head
light 3-weight M&L 1 bulls $441.18/cwt -15.04 vs last sale · ≈ $1,429/hd at 324 lb · 11 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 204 230 309
Feeder cattle 164 200 277
Slaughter cattle 40 26 32
Replacement cattle — 4 —

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared to last week, Feeder Steers and Heifers sold firm on a narrow comparison, with Feeder Bulls selling unevenly steady with instances of 10.00 lower to 10.00 higher; Slaughter Cows and Bulls sold firm on a light test this and last week.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
228–248 238 2 465.00 $465.00 $1,107 —
344 344 1 460.00 $460.00 $1,582 —
388 388 1 440.00 $440.00 $1,707 —
472 472 1 417.50 $417.50 $1,971 +19.90
480 value added 480 2 465.00 $465.00 $2,232 —
510–516 513 2 400.00–420.00 $410.06 $2,104 +45.26
580 580 1 305.00 $305.00 $1,769 —
594 value added 594 1 405.00 $405.00 $2,406 —
608 value added 608 1 402.50 $402.50 $2,447 —
652–694 673 2 350.00–360.00 $354.84 $2,388 —
712 value added 712 1 355.00 $355.00 $2,528 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
418 418 1 395.00 $395.00 $1,651 —
520 520 1 325.00 $325.00 $1,690 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
286 286 1 395.00 $395.00 $1,130 —
312–338 325 2 400.00–410.00 $405.20 $1,317 -9.80
354–398 378 5 400.00–440.00 $424.99 $1,606 +25.88
406–448 430 5 395.00–425.00 $412.85 $1,775 +33.99
468 thin fleshed 468 1 415.00 $415.00 $1,942 —
462–498 483 4 340.00–387.50 $361.54 $1,746 -5.13
493 value added 493 2 402.50 $402.50 $1,984 —
504–542 523 9 320.00–370.00 $340.68 $1,782 +20.16
534 value added 534 5 360.00 $360.00 $1,922 —
550–596 576 4 300.00–345.00 $326.08 $1,878 +11.08
603–621 612 4 330.00–337.50 $333.69 $2,042 +43.69
664 664 1 320.00 $320.00 $2,125 +27.82
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
290–292 291 3 370.00–380.00 $376.67 $1,096 +41.67
304–332 318 2 300.00–340.00 $320.88 $1,020 -34.12
394 394 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,182 -50.00
450 450 1 330.00 $330.00 $1,485 —
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
530–546 539 3 290.00–300.00 $296.65 $1,599 —
556 556 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,668 —

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Feeder Bulls

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
234 234 1 465.00 $465.00 $1,088 +10.00
262–266 264 2 400.00–435.00 $417.37 $1,102 -34.35
304–316 thin fleshed 310 2 475.00–480.00 $477.45 $1,480 —
302–344 327 9 400.00–460.00 $433.12 $1,416 -0.53
366–396 383 8 400.00–460.00 $430.91 $1,650 -0.59
404–448 428 8 390.00–430.00 $415.70 $1,779 +18.41
450–486 475 9 370.00–425.00 $399.64 $1,898 +28.78
512–548 530 7 345.00–410.00 $370.79 $1,965 +25.59
560–571 569 5 352.50–375.00 $356.93 $2,031 +27.07
602–638 624 8 325.00–340.00 $335.63 $2,094 +65.63
656–686 672 4 330.00–340.00 $334.98 $2,251 +114.98
764–782 777 5 285.00–315.00 $293.91 $2,284 —
Medium 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
314–336 325 2 400.00 $400.00 $1,300 +30.00
368 368 1 390.00 $390.00 $1,435 +22.79
460 460 1 330.00 $330.00 $1,518 +7.54
536–546 541 2 300.00–310.00 $305.05 $1,650 —
552 552 1 350.00 $350.00 $1,932 +30.00
Medium and Large 2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
490 490 1 357.50 $357.50 $1,752 +37.50
534 534 1 300.00 $300.00 $1,602 -6.62
606 606 1 290.00 $290.00 $1,757 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1262–1554 1408 75-80% 2 140.00–150.00 $145.52 $2,049 -9.81
1284–1704 1458 75-80% 9 160.00–175.00 $167.36 $2,440 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
966–1346 1172 80-85% 4 175.00–193.00 $182.04 $2,134 —
1088–1376 1175 80-85% 4 165.00–174.00 $168.86 $1,984 —
1506 1506 80-85% 1 140.00 $140.00 $2,108 —
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
828–840 834 85-90% 2 125.00–129.00 $127.01 $1,059 —
908–1334 1123 85-90% 5 135.00–152.50 $143.91 $1,616 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1262–1684 1455 4 200.00–218.00 $204.45 $2,975 —

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Reading this report

What does "Medium and Large 1" mean?

USDA feeder grades describe frame size and muscle thickness, not quality of the individual animal. "Medium and Large" is the frame score; the number is muscle (1 = heaviest muscled). "Medium and Large 1–2" pens mix both muscle scores — common across the Southeast.

What is $/cwt?

Dollars per hundredweight — per 100 lb of animal. A 500-lb calf at $450/cwt brings 5 × $450 = $2,250. Lighter cattle usually bring more per cwt but less per head.

Why are some prices per head?

Bred cows, cow-calf pairs, and some replacement classes sell by the head, not by weight. We show those exactly as USDA reports them — a $/head figure is never converted into $/cwt on this site.

Where do these numbers come from?

From the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's Livestock Market News — federal reporters at the sale. We publish each report in full and link the official USDA document at the top of the page.